Discover Alleins: Heritage and walking trails

Alleins combines a heritage trail with historic buildings and walking paths to chapel ruins. The “Alleins au fil du temps” trail, the Route du Calvaire and the paths to Chapelle Saint-Georges each offer a different focus. If you’re looking for a hotel for your stay in Alleins, this distinction can help you plan: Would you like to learn about the history of individual sites, see historic remains or walk into a protected natural area?

Heritage trail and Route du Calvaire

The “Alleins au fil du temps” heritage trail leads to numbered stops. Some of them have enamelled lava-stone plaques explaining the history of each site in French and English. This lets you explore the stops in sequence and take in the bilingual information about each site’s history. The trail is therefore well suited to visitors interested in the individual sites and their history.

The Route du Calvaire has a different focus. Along the route are 14 stone stations symbolising the Stations of Christ. The route descends towards the village in gentle, successive hairpin bends and is freely accessible on foot, by bicycle or by car. Its religious theme and winding course make it a distinct way to explore Alleins. If you’d like to include this part of the village in your plans, you can choose among the modes of transport mentioned.

Château and chapel

The Château d’Alleins is known for its remarkable remains. From the late 15th century until the French Revolution, it was the residence of the Renaud family. To visit, leave your car in one of the village car parks and continue on foot to the château. This access differs from the Route du Calvaire, which can also be reached by bicycle or car.

Different access arrangements apply to the Chapelle des Pénitents blancs: its façade dates from the late 17th century, but the chapel is privately owned. You must contact the White Penitents (Pénitents blancs) to gain access. If you plan to visit both buildings, bear this difference in mind: visiting the château involves walking there after parking, while the chapel requires contacting its owners in advance.

Walking paths and nature

Walking paths from the Petit Sonnailler plain lead to the ruins of Chapelle Saint-Georges. The chapel lies at the heart of a protected natural area in the Natura 2000 network. Protected species such as the Egyptian vulture may be spotted there. A sighting is therefore possible, but not guaranteed as part of a visit. Visitors interested in nature as well as heritage will find a different focus here than at the stops in the village.

Explore Alleins through a game and plan your journey

“Intrigue dans la ville” is a family-friendly investigation and puzzle game that lets you discover Alleins at your own pace. The educational game adds a puzzle-solving element to the historic stops and paths. If it’s important to your plans, ask locally whether it’s available.

Alleins can be reached by car via the nearby A7 motorway and exit 26 at Sénas. When planning your stay, you can focus on the visits that matter most to you: the heritage trail, the Route du Calvaire, the château followed by a walk, or the paths to Chapelle Saint-Georges. For the Chapelle des Pénitents blancs, you’ll also need to contact the owners about access. This lets you take the different arrangements for each visit into account without treating them as a single route.

Discover more destinations: Saint-Martin-De-Crau, La Penne-Sur-Huveaune, Grans, Rousset, Pont De Crau Arles, Barbentane, Carro, Allauch

See the full regional travel guide: Bouches Du Rhone.